


Harry Potter: Time Traveler - The Redo

by broken_hearted_bard



Series: This, That or the Other Thing [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, New and Better Classes, OOC!Ron, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2020-06-28 06:57:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19807060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/broken_hearted_bard/pseuds/broken_hearted_bard
Summary: Yeah, that's what could have happened. But here....here's what really happened.[The Other Thing][This -- the plot setup][That -- what could have happened after he time traveled][The Other Thing -- here's what really happened]





	1. Back In The Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time Travel works and Harry lands in the past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!  
> I finally remembered what Part 3 (what really happened) was supposed to be about, and here is its beginning!! :)

His body ached, his muscles felt wobbly and his limbs felt cramped.

Harry stretched out and immediately regretted it as his feet came into contact with something solid, hard and cold. As the tingling in his limbs began to subside, he carefully sat up.

Out of a long-born habit, he pushed his glasses back up his nose, settling them into place, and then he looked around. The tiny, cramped space...the cupboard under the stairs.

"What in ever loving fuck?" he asked himself as he took stock of his surroundings and himself.

He was eleven -- again. His adult brain, his adult soul, his adult personality...trapped in his eleven-year-old body. In the cupboard under the stairs.

"Well, fuck," he whispered. The time travelling couldn't have gone more wrong.

Harry didn't know how he was going to fix his world -- as a kid, who currently didn't even possess a legal wand -- but he would. He had to. He was here to fix things, regardless of his age, innocence or overall circumstances. He still had the bag -- and it was still full of his things, including the Cloak and the Stone, and several other things. The Elder Wand was gone, but he still had the secondary wand that he'd packed.

He'd start with the letter from Hogwarts and work his way through the trials and tribulations from there. 

He snorted out a laugh. There was no way on Merlin's earth that anyone was getting that letter away from him, now that he was armed with future knowledge. 

************

TBC


	2. Breaking Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry confronts Petunia and Vernon.
> 
> WARNING: some domestic violence is in this chapter. It is slight, but it's there.

That morning, contrary to Harry's proper timeline, Vernon grabbed the mail on his way to work. Harry didn't hear a word about it, at all. He figured his Uncle had thrown the letter away, far away from their house, and considered the matter dealt with. He didn't believe for one second that his Aunt hadn't gotten an earful about it though.

He noticed the owls outside the next day too and he knew that his Aunt would find letters in unlikely places -- he just had to get to one. He didn't remember every detail of the letter from when he'd been eleven in his original timeline, so he needed it as a sort of refresher -- the list for what he'd need for Year One (even though he did plan to buy a lot more things too). He was glad he already had some money, because he'd need the Knight bus to take him to the Leaky Cauldron.

Aunt Petunia treated him to a rare low-chore day, and he knew it was because of the letters. He kept quiet, kept to himself, and went out into the garden to do the gardening work she'd requested. Since it was rare for his Aunt to not spend her days staring out the windows at the neighbors, Harry bided his time and pruned and weeded the flower beds. When it was time to soak the beds, Harry made his move. Petunia never stayed at the windows during soaking time, lest she accidentally get drenched (as she liked to open the windows a crack or two in order to better hear the neighbors). 

Harry made his way to the closest owl, perched on the hedgerow. 

"Hey," he said softly. "I need my letter. My Hogwarts letter. My relatives can't be trusted with it, but I've got an errand, tomorrow, that will take me away from the house. Do you think you could get the letter to me then? And no more letters at my house?"

The bird looked deeply into his eyes for a moment and then looked away. 

Harry sighed. "Really. I want my letter. But these people...there's no way they'll let me have it. Especially not if you guys...you and the other owls...are so aggressive."

The bird looked back at him and this time it blinked.

"Okay, so, tomorrow, I'll be walking through the park on my way to the little farmer's market. I won't have long. I'm on a strict time limit when the errand is farther from the house. But I'll be heading through the park, tomorrow morning. Early. Like...around seven. Okay?" Harry asked.

The owl shifted, fluttering its wings and then it gave a chirp, a nod and flew away.

Harry grinned and returned to the flower beds.

***

A different owl than the one Harry had spoken to dropped his Hogwarts letter at his feet, the next morning, and then flew away.

Harry grabbed the letter and continued on his way to the Farmer's Market. He'd open it when he needed it, and not a moment before. Hermione's undetectable bag was stuffed under the floorboard in Dudley's second bedroom -- which had been easier than he'd thought it would be as Dudley rarely went in there and Harry was in charge of keeping it tidy. He'd swiped a couple of books from the room without anyone noticing (Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank; Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie; Watership Down, Richard Adams; and The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken) and he'd used the cleaning time in there to scout out any potentially useful broken toys or belongings.

There hadn't been anything useful, but he was absolutely taking the books (and probably others) with him when he left. And he wasn't sure if he was ever coming back.

***

That night, he confronted his Aunt and Uncle in the parlor, after dinner.

"So," he announced as he stood there, arms crossed over his chest, head cocked up. "I'm going to be starting Hogwarts in the fall. September, to be exact. I'm headed out tomorrow, to get my school things."

Vernon turned an alarming shade of pink.

All the colour drained from Petunia's face.

Dudley was engrossed in a television programme and didn't even look up.

"We agreed to stop this nonsense when we took you in, boy!" Vernon shouted.

"H-how do you even know about H-Hog....that school!?" asked Petunia.

Harry smirked. He liked to think the expression was a near-match to Draco's, but he tried not to think about it. His people were lost to him, even if he got back to his timeline, he'd probably never be close with them again.

"I've got my letter. It is my letter, so it's not like the owls wouldn't make every effort to get it to me," he explained.

"How do you know about it?" came Petunia's weak whisper.

"Magick," stated Harry.

"Boy, you had better be joking! We're not about to put up with that freakishness, or a thing like you under our roof!" Vernon said sharply.

"Vernon, stop!" Petunia cried.

Harry blinked in surprise. He'd never, not in all his years as her nephew, ever heard her stand up to his Uncle. Never, not once.

Vernon rounded on Petunia faster than anyone thought possible. The smack as his hand connected with her face could be heard throughout the house.

Dudley leapt to his feet. "Eh, then, what's on?" he asked.

"What's going on, Dudders," Harry said. "Is that I'm going away to school and your father thinks it's okay to slap your mother."

Dudley frowned. "What? Dad?" he looked over at Vernon.

"I won't be told what to do in my own house!" Vernon shouted, an ugly expression on his face. He looked at Harry. "And if I have to beat this freakishness out of you, so help me God, I will."

Petunia had staggered back by this time and was now clutching her face. "Vernon, dear," she pleaded. "You can't b-beat him."

"Come now, Petunia, dear," Vernon crooned. "You've cut his hair against his will, stuffed him in a closet for his whole life, hit him with a frying pan several times, and made him work like a slave. Surely you'll not fret about a good beating? He needs it. We can't have his freakishness in our home. We can't! We're normal!"

"I...I..." Petunia turned wild eyes on Harry. "I have never liked you. Not once. I have never wanted to raise you or to keep you as my own. But I won't let him beat you...Harry."

Harry gave a sigh of relief. He had hoped sanity would win out in the end, but Petunia wasn't done speaking.

"We need him, Vernon. My blood and his blood, my blood connection to my sister...it keeps our home off the radar of the very bad people who would come after Harry -- and by extension, us. Harry needs to call this place home. If...if you enact punishment, such as...such as a beating...it could very well destroy the blood protection that our home is under. I...I'm sorry I spoke out of turn. I'm sorry....I'm sorry to overrule you in your home, but I...I must insist," Petunia explained.

Vernon paled. "We need the boy? He keeps us protected?"

Petunia nodded. "From the Dark Lord. Remember? Dumbledore's letter?"

Harry rolled his eyes, but refrained from commenting.

Vernon slowly sat down in his favourite chair.

Dudley returned to watching his tv programme.

Petunia stood up straight and looked Harry in the eye. "I don't know how you've come to know what you have. I read the letter and it didn't include the details. But, I see you've made up your mind. I'll support you, in trade."

"You'll support me?" Harry asked.

"Yes. I'll see to it that you have Dudley's second bedroom when you're here, and you'll have a few less chores on the daily," she responded.

"And what do you want from me?" Harry asked, his voice was skeptical.

"For you to find somewhere else to live," Petunia said softly. "Aside from two weeks out of every summer. For two weeks, you'll come back here."

"To renew the blood wards," Harry replied, then he nodded. "Two weeks. Where I have a private bedroom, cook the meals, do the gardening and are otherwise left on my own." He liked cooking and gardening, but he didn't want to be handed a litany of other chores, nor would he agree to keep doing everything.

"You'll stay in your room except for the loo when you're not cooking the meals or gardening," Petunia agreed.

"You won't bother us, boy!" Vernon piped up. "We won't be tolerating any of that insanity! That....magic!"

Harry nodded again and then appealed to his Aunt. "Unless I need magic for homework, I won't use it anywhere else except in what is to be my room. I'll cook and prepare, as well as attend to the garden...for two weeks. I'll stay in my room at all times except for the loo and those chores. And you'll tell no one, not even Dumbledore, that I'm living somewhere else."

Petunia stuck out her hand. "Agreed."

Harry moved into Dudley's second bedroom, after giving it a thorough cleaning and tossing out all the junk. All that was left was three small bookshelves full of books, an empty (newly cleaned) birdcage that Harry hung in the corner, a bed dressed in mismatched sheets and a duvet, and a desk and desk chair. He settled in as well as he could, for the night.

***

The next day, Harry grabbed his bag, flagged down the Knight Bus by sticking his secondary wand into the air at the curb, paid the 11-sickle fee and settled in for the ride.

He slipped through the pub with the hood of his sweatshirt pulled down over his head, and used his wand to open the passageway. As he stepped onto the main thoroughfare in Diagon Alley, he breathed a sigh of relief. The feeling of magick was back in his life and here, where dozens upon dozens of wixen milled about, he wouldn't have to be careful about his use of it. There was no way the Ministry could track individual use of magick in a place this big, with this much magick running rampant all over, with this many wixen about.

Besides which, he didn't currently have a registered wand. He'd made his secondary wand himself, for one, and it came from the future. No way to track it with the tools and instruments that the Ministry used to track underage magick.

Harry walked down the lane and off to the right and into _Prandete_. He ordered over-medium eggs on buttered toast, a side of fruit and a short pot of tea with cream and vanilla. As he ate, he read the Hogwarts letter. It was much the same as he remembered (a few books and supplies he didn't recognize), but it also contained a list of school rules that he didn't recall from the first time around.

After a lengthy breakfast, Harry went about purchasing his school supplies. He chose three trunks rather than one and was very careful about the selections -- he needed compartments for different things and a feather light charm on each trunk. He would maintain one for clothing and the other for books and supplies and the final, third, trunk was much smaller and would be for potions and medicinal supplies.

His next stop was Gringotts. Harry had a lot to discuss with the Goblin in charge of the Potter accounts, and he was also going to take out the money from his school-trust vault for Hedwig, his wand and the robes he needed. He'd use the money he'd brought with him for the muggle clothes he needed and any other purchases.

Gringotts went better than expected. Harry knew what to ask, now, and what to look for. He understood how wixen money worked, and how the Lord and Ladyship laws and inheritances worked. Outwardly, he was eleven years old, but inwardly his mind still worked like the adult man he'd been. He remembered everything he'd had to learn after the war was over and he knew what to do.

Matters and money settled, home secured, Harry walked into Ollivander's with confidence. It was time to be reunited with his wand.

*********************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wixen -- a non gendered term for witches and wizards, usually plural.


	3. Hogwarts Express

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ride to Hogwarts.
> 
> *OutOfCharacter!Ron

Potter Manor was in much better condition than when Harry had first seen it in his original timeline, and for that he was grateful. It had some disrepair, some disuse, but the House Elves were happy to clean and repair and help where they could. Staying in his family manor with portraits of his parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and various other relatives was a little daunting. It did make him wish he knew more about his mother's parents, but it wasn't like he was going to ask Petunia about it.

Mimsy, Wimsy, Timp and Lins were quite happy, thank you very much, to help young Harry remodel and clean Potter Manor. As the Peverell-Potter House Elves they were extremely pleased that a Potter had taken such an interest [finally] in the family manor.

The home was large and needed repairs, remodels and daily keeping up with the cleaning. Harry was happy to help, but glad for the House Elves as he couldn't do it all himself. The grounds were large as well, and consisted of several acres -- two greenhouses, a flower garden, an orchard, stables for horses, and fields of green to roam. He was lucky the Elves had been keeping up with the grounds, at least, as they'd let the house go to disarray. The gardens were lovely, the grounds well-kept, the orchard thriving, and the two remaining horses were well-groomed, well cared for and well-fed.

Harry didn't dare use the _holly and phoenix feather_ wand for the repairs or cleaning or helping to remodel, even though it felt good, so good, to hold it once again. Instead, he used his secondary wand exclusively -- until he'd go off to school on September the first. Black walnut, ten inches in length, with an extremely strange core of Demiguise hair coupled with a shed Thunderbird feather -- not an Ollivander wand. It served Harry quite well, and he was glad he'd remembered to pack it.

With how much attention the house needed, the rest of his summer went by quickly. He ate good meals (prepared by himself), got decent sleep at night in a lovely bed in a gorgeous room, and when the repairs and remodel was finished he read books and practiced magick in the library while his parents' and grandparents' portraits watched over him. The house was quiet, but that didn't bother him. If he had need of a conversation, he'd just summon up a House Elf or he could walk down to the local village and strike up a conversation with any number of people. He also talked to the portraits -- though he suspected doing too much of that could render him a right nutter. Finally, he also talked to Hedwig -- and very often, at that.

He'd been overjoyed to see her in Eeylops Owl Emporium. Harry knew she was his familiar, even if she didn't, but she'd been happy to come home with him and she seemed pleased whenever he spoke to her, petted her or spent time with her. She hooted back happily, and gave him gentle pecks with her beak and even cuddled him with one wing occasionally. She enjoyed the grounds, and the free-reign he'd given her to hunt small animals within the acreage. She didn't spend time in the small Owlery because it was the top-most structure in the house and much too big for her needs, when there weren't any other owls sharing the space -- so she mostly slept on the perch in the library or the one in the kitchen.

Winifred, the village tinkerer at a shop simply called _Inventors_ , had been pleased to have the Potter account paid in full (Harry's grandparents hadn't been able to get all the business done before they'd died and it seemed like his Dad hadn't finished everything up either) and she'd been even happier to get a commission for the box that Harry needed created. The box would, at some point soon, hold Peter Pettigrew until Harry could figure out what to do with the rat.

The Elves kept the house clean, the grounds tidy and cared for, and they kept the kitchen and the loos stocked with supplies with the household account Harry had been able to rearrange when he'd been at Gringotts. In many ways, it was the best month of his life and he hadn't wanted it to end.

Finally, it was time to board the Hogwarts Express and head off to school. He wasn't sure how he was going to attend school all over again, but he knew that this time he was going to try harder, do better, and get into less trouble. If Voldemort came for him the same ways, then not only would Harry be ready, be prepared, but he'd save a lot of time and trouble -- for everyone.

The Express looked the same, the smells were the same, and the noise was the same. Harry levitated his trunks (connected by a strap, stacked on top of each other) up into the luggage compartment and got onto the train. In a compartment on the left side, he slid the door mostly closed and took a seat. He'd sent Hedwig along ahead of him, to fly to Hogwarts and wait in the Owlery. Her cage was shrunk in one of his trunks. From his knapsack he pulled out a book and began reading while he waited.

Since he'd been early, he had a while to wait. Eventually, though, the door slid back and Ron Weasley poked his head in. There wasn't dirt on his nose, as Harry remembered, his clothing was pressed and his hair was slicked back -- not unlike Harry's first impression of Draco Malfoy. Harry held back a surprised expression and, instead, simply nodded at the young boy. He didn't know why Ron's history had changed this much, but he'd never find out if he didn't make friends.

"I tell you," Ron said, going quite off-script to the first time Harry had met him. "It's a madhouse out there. May I sit with you?"

Harry nodded and gestured to the seat across from himself. "Sure, I don't mind."

"Everywhere else is full," Ron said, by way of explanation.

Harry rather doubted that, as the train had at least 4 more stops to make, but he let it go. He leaned forward and held out his hand. "Harry Potter. It's nice to meet you."

Ron gave a wide smile. "Lovely to meet you, Heir Potter."

Harry flinched, slightly. "You can call me Harry."

"Thanks, I appreciate that. I'm Ronald Weasley, of the Devon Weasleys, Ancient House of Weasley. However, you can call me Ron, unless you get sorted into Slytherin," Ron explained.

"Well, that's very rude, Ronny-kins," came a voice from the doorway.

Ron turned bright red as he looked towards the door where two identical young teens stood.

"I'm Fred," Fred said as he stepped into the compartment.

"They're my older brothers, Fred and George," Ron said, affably enough.

"Yep, he's Fred, I'm George, and we're pleased to meet you. We're sorry our youngest brother is so rude," George said.

"It's alright. And, by the way, I don't know very much about the Houses." Harry responded.

"You must!" Ron cried. "You're Harry Potter, of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter!"

"Were you raised in a barn, Ron?" Fred asked as he wiggled a finger in one of his ears. "Tsk, tsk."

Ron gave a short, but unpleasant laugh. "You two don't really care." He looked at Harry again. "Besides which, that's his impression of our Mum."

Harry smiled. "George, Fred, pleasure to meet you."

"We just needed to..." George said pleasantly.

"Drop this off for Ron, then..." Fred continued.

"We'll be out of your hair!" George finished as he handed Ron a small paper bag and then dragged Fred back out the door.

Ron's face fell. "I thought I'd gotten away with leaving that behind."

Harry rose and shut the compartment door. 

"What is it?" Harry asked as he sat back down.

"Sandwiches my Mum's prepared," Ron asked.

"What sort of sandwiches?" asked Harry.

"Corned beef. Which I hate, but Mum, well...as long as she's feeding you, she really doesn't concern herself with your preferences," Ron explained as he put his bag down next to him on the seat.

Harry looked around for the rat cage, and felt an odd and unpleasant twist in his stomach when he didn't see it. 

Harry frowned. "So...what _do_ I call you if I get sorted into Slytherin?"

"Weasley, of course. We won't be friends if you get put there. Slytherins are notoriously evil." Ron gave a slight shudder and then laughed. "Well, probably not evil -- but most Slytherins go bad, anyways, and I'd rather not associate with that. I have a couple of acquaintances who'll go Slytherin, but...well, we're all aware who our real friends are."

For a moment Harry felt as though he was underwater. Who was this? Where was happy, well-adjusted, if jealous, well-loved, Ron? What was going on in this timeline that had some things so completely out of whack?

"And who are your real friends, then?" Harry asked after a moment.

"Well, Heir Longbottom, Heir MacMillan, Heir Abbott and Heir Brown. Heir Lovegood is more my sister's friend than my own, though we get along fine," Ron explained. The casual name-dropping startled Harry - he didn't know what to make of it, or how to feel about Ron's mostly pureblood circle, but he said nothing.

"I was raised in seclusion, so I don't really know who anyone is, outside of my studies," Harry replied.

Ron sniffed for a moment, as though he'd smelled something bad and then he gave an abbreviated shrug. "It doesn't matter, I suppose. You're Harry Potter, that's enough."

Harry nodded and, as Ron stared out the window and the train began moving, he went back to reading his book.

A few hours later, the compartment door opened again. The train was at a stop, seemingly to pick up more students, and so it was noisier than it had been before. 

Neville moved into the doorway, looking frazzled and upset. Hermione stood next to him -- her wild, dark locks springing up in all directions.

"Pleased to meet you, I'm Hermione Granger and this --" Hermione was cut off at Ron's excited voice.

"Neville! So happy to see you, come in, come in and meet Harry Potter!" Ron cried.

Neville stumbled into the compartment and sat next to Ron. Hermione sat down next to Harry.

"You're not _really_ Harry Potter, are you?" Hermione asked. 

Harry smiled. Here was someone who, clearly, hadn't been changed by the timeline shifts. Hermione was bright, enthusiastic, talkative and, yes, still with that shine of know-it-all in her eyes. 

"Yeah, you can call me Harry," Harry said softly.

Neville reached out from across the aisle. "Pleased to meet you, Heir Potter. You can call me Neville. I hope we'll be friends."

Harry nodded. "I'd like that."

"Unless he ends up in Slytherin," Ron supplied.

Neville rolled his eyes. "He's Harry Potter, Ron. I'll be friends regardless of where he ends up."

"Good to know," Harry said. "Now...what had you two rushing in here?"

"Oh! Neville's lost his toad," Hermione replied.

Neville turned a light shade of pink. "Yeah, Trevor has gone missing again."

"I expect he'll turn up," Ron said. "I'm going in search of the Trolley. I'm half-starved!" He went through the door quickly, shutting it behind him.

"Sorry about him," Neville said to Hermione. "He doesn't mean to be rude, he's just a bit caught up in the Pureblood vs. Halfblood vs. Muggleborn nonsense."

"Is Weasley a Pureblood name, then?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," Neville replied. "His father, Arthur, is the current Lord Weasley. His mother is the current Lady Prewett. They hadn't originally intended to take up the titles, but...circumstances meant they had to. Ron can be very...pompous about it, but he means well."

"He's anti-muggle?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Oh no. No. He likes his place in society, yes, so does his older brother, Percy. But the rest of his family is really mellow about it all. Fred and George, you'll meet them, they're two years ahead of us, are real pranksters. I think the muggle world is valuable, and that so are all muggles. And I think wixen should really understand the muggle world better, and be more open to the muggleborn or muggleraised amongst us. Ron and I haven't talked that much about it though," Neville rambled, trying to explain.

"It's okay, Neville. I imagine I'm going to be exposed to a lot of things, in school. I'll find my way through it," Hermione said pleasantly.

"What classes are you looking forward to, Neville?" Harry asked, changing the subject.

Neville sat back. "Herbology, mostly. I'm good with plants. The rest of the subjects kind of...well, I'm a little scared of the rest of them -- all that magick. My family wasn't really sure I had any....magick, that is, until a year or so ago. I think I'll be fine in Charms, and I know I'll be good in the non-magickal courses...but that's about it."

"Oh!" Hermione exclaimed. "I am so glad we'll have to learn non-magickal subjects! I'd forgotten that! It's good for me, as a muggleborn, to know that everything I've learned will still be needed. But I really look forward to Transfiguration and Potions! How about you, Harry?"

Harry settled into the seat-back and crossed one leg over the other.

By the time Ron got back, with a full tea-service and several treats that he shared with the whole cabin, they were well-involved in a discussion about classes and what sorts of magick they might learn in their first year.

********************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Students In Harry's Year
> 
> **pureblood; *halfblood
> 
> Hannah Abbott*, Lowri Aliyah**, Susan Bones*, Terry Boot*, Mandy Brocklehurst*, Lavender Brown**, Millicent Bulstrode**, Michael Corner, Stephen Cornfoot**, Vincent Crabbe**, Brogan Crowley*.
> 
> Tracey Davis, Emilia Dune*, Kevin Entwhistle, Caio Emil*, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Seamus Finnigan*, Tilly Fletcher, Anthony Goldstein*, Gregory Goyle**, Hermione Granger, Daphne Greengrass**.
> 
> Amanda Hooch*, Wayne Hopkins, Owen Hughes, Orson Idris, Fergus Ivor**, Madeline Jones, Meghan Jorkins*.
> 
> Su Li**, Neville Longbottom**, Ernie MacMillan**, Draco Malfoy**, Morrison MacDougal**, Morag MacDougal**, Primrose Montague*, Pike Moon*.
> 
> Theodore Nott**, Padma Patil**, Parvati Patil**, Charles Parker, Pansy Parkinson**, Sally-Anne Perks*, Harry Potter*.
> 
> Zacharias Smith**, Emma Stewartson, Dean Thomas, Lisa Turpin*, Ines Vasquez**, Ronald Weasley**, Blaise Zabini**.


	4. Hogwarts Sorting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and the rest go through the Sorting.
> 
> Short chapter -- just the sorting.

Hogwarts made his throat hurt and his eyes sting. The portraits; the endless, winding staircases; the smells of firewood and candle wax; the feeling of magick in the air and even the old stone walls -- everything about it was home to Harry and he was extremely glad to be back. It had been too long.

He followed along after Professor McGonagall and the rest of the first years into the Great Hall; and it was only McGonagall's stern lecture that saved them from Peeves' water balloons and cackling laughter. She put him to rights as easily as anything and for that, Harry was grateful. He hadn't needed to be doused in water, frigid with the cold, thank you very much.

The candles in the Great Hall, hovering in the air, shone brightly. The tables were laden with gray linens that Harry didn't remember but the signature gold tableware, plates and cutlery were already in place. The students, aside from the first years, were in their places at the House tables and the Head table was full of Professors -- many that Harry had never seen before. He didn't know how the timeline had changed this much just by his coming back to it, but it made him feel uneasy.

The Sorting started off in the exact same way as Harry had been expecting, but he should have known that something would go wrong or off or just mental; he should have been expecting it.

Hannah was the first Hufflepuff, Lowri was the first Ravenclaw, Susan sorted into Hufflepuff as well, Terry and Mandy both sorted into Ravenclaw, Lavender was the first Gryffindor and Millicent was the first Slytherin. From there things continued to go as Harry expected -- Michael and Stephen to Ravenclaw, Crabbe to Slytherin, Brogan to Gryffindor, Tracey Davis to Slytherin, Emilia Dune to Hufflepuff, Kevin to Ravenclaw and Caio went to Gryffindor. Justin sorted to Hufflepuff, Seamus and Tilly to Gryffindor, Anthony to Ravenclaw, Goyle to Slytherin, Hermione to Gryffindor, Daphne to Slytherin, Amanda to Gryffindor, and Wayne and Owen went to Hufflepuff. Both Orson and Fergus went to Slytherin, while Madeline and Meghan went to Hufflepuff and Su went to Ravenclaw.

Neville sorted to Gryffindor, for which Harry breathed a sigh of relief and then Ernie sorted into Hufflepuff. When Draco took the chair and the Sorting Hat was placed on his head, Harry held his breath. He should have known something was wrong, and off, when the Hat took more than five minutes to sort Draco.

Finally, finally, the Hat opened its brim-mouth and shouted, "Better be Ravenclaw!"

Harry groaned in frustration but, luckily, the noise was covered up by the clapping from the Ravenclaw table -- though not quite enough, by the weird look Ron gave him. Harry gave him a shrug and turned back to stare at the sorting platform.

The MacDougal twins, Primrose Montague and Pike Moon all sorted into Slytherin with ease. Theodore Nott changed the game a second time by sorting into Ravenclaw, but then it got back on track with Padma (Ravenclaw) and Parvati (Gryffindor). Charles sorted into Hufflepuff, Pansy went into Slytherin, Sally-Anne sorted into Gryffindor and then it was Harry's turn.

Harry walked quickly up to the stool and sat down. The hat came down over his eyes and he waited, a little impatiently, for it to begin to speak to him -- in his head.

 _Ah, Mr. Potter, such a pleasure to meet you_ the hat said quietly.

 _Nice to meet you too, sir,_ Harry responded politely in his head.

 _An awful lot of knowledge here, Mr. Potter. A bit of bad business with your relatives, a little bit of a bias pro the magickal world; not really looking to rejoin the muggle world, are you?_ the hat inquired.

Harry struggled to respond for a moment, unsure of what to say.

 _Where to put you, where to put you?_ the hat asked.

 _I'd rather be placed in Gryffindor, which is where I belong, honestly,_ Harry replied.

 _I can see that, Mr. Potter, but I'm not sure it's what is best for you,_ said the hat in reply.

 _I'm strong and brave and ready to dive in. I'm not particularly inclined towards homework and I don't really have ambitions, not more than wanting to..._ Harry trailed off.

 _Put things back the way they should be?_ the hat asked, a little snarkily.

 _I'm loyal and genuine, but I'm not overly hard-working and I don't think I'm that nice. I protect people, but because I have to. I'd rather do other things, mostly,_ Harry argued.

 _You are a lot of things, and you have a lot of skills and magick._ The hat seemed to debate with itself for several minutes, in near-silence.

After what felt like an eternity, the hat cried, "RAVENCLAW!"

Harry handed the hat back to McGonagall and trudged over to the Ravenclaw table. They didn't shout "we've got Potter," like he knew the Gryffindors would have, they simply clapped politely until Harry sat down - across from Draco.

"Heir Malfoy," Draco said formally. "But you can call me Draco."

The surprise must have shown on Harry's face because the next sentence out of Draco's mouth was, "What? It's best to be on first-names with dorm-mates. And besides, you're Heir Potter. We could make good friends."

Harry smiled, a little awkwardly, and then nodded. "You can call me Harry," he said quietly.

Zacharias sorted into Hufflepuff, Emma and Dean went to Gryffindor, Lisa went to Ravenclaw, Ines went to Ravenclaw as well and Ronald...surprising the whole of the Gryffindor table, Ron sorted into Slytherin. Finally, Blaise Zabini sorted into Ravenclaw.

The sorting had gone so oddly -- so off-track after Draco's sorting -- that Harry passed through dinner in a kind of haze; he made friendly comments to Draco and Blaise and Theo and Ines, and ate food and drank pumpkin juice but he was extremely glad when the Ravenclaw 5th Year Prefects led him and the rest of the 1st Year Eagles up to Ravenclaw Tower.

*********************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Students In Harry's Year:
> 
> ** pure-blood; * half-blood; none is muggle-born
> 
> Hannah Abbott*, Lowri Aliyah**, Susan Bones*, Terry Boot*, Mandy Brocklehurst*, Lavender Brown**, Millicent Bulstrode**, Michael Corner, Stephen Cornfoot**, Vincent Crabbe**, Brogan Crowley, Tracey Davis, Emilia Dune*, Kevin Entwhistle, Caio Emil*, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Seamus Finnigan*, Tilly Fletcher, Anthony Goldstein*, Gregory Goyle**, Hermione Granger, Daphne Greengrass**, Amanda Hooch**, Wayne Hopkins, Owen Hughes, Orson Idris, Fergus Ivor**, Madeline Jones, Meghan Jorkins*, Su Li**, Neville Longbottom**, Ernie Macmillan**, Draco Malfoy**, Morrison MacDougal**, Morag MacDougal**, Primrose Montague*, Pike Moon*, Theodore Nott**, Padma Patil**, Parvati Patil**, Charles Parker, Pansy Parkinson**, Sally-Anne Perks*, Harry Potter*, Zacharias Smith**, Emma Stewartson, Dean Thomas, Lisa Turpin*, Ines Vasquez**, Ronald Weasley**, Blaise Zabini**.


	5. That First Week

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry's first week of school as a Ravenclaw.

The Ravenclaw Tower was larger than the Gryffindor Tower, which was Harry's first thought about it. Harry was roomed with Draco and Blaise, while Theo was roomed with Anthony and Terry. Lastly, Michael, Stephen and Kevin were roomed together. Padma was in with Ines and Lowri; Su, Mandy and Lisa shared a room as well.

The Ravenclaw dorm just seemed bigger, to Harry. Prefects shared a room with only one other Prefect, and the Head Ravenclaw girl had her own room. Each year had its own common room area and there was also the large common room available to all of the years when you first entered the House -- after solving the riddle at the door. There were books everywhere, as well as parchment and quills and ink and muggle pens and paper and other office-type supplies. Ravenclaw even had tiny rooms for practicing music -- warded against outside noise and interference; all sorts of instruments were inside, some Harry had never even seen before.

There were alcoves for practicing magick, warded against injury and interference; and cubby holes with deep cushions and sofas for hanging out, all curtained off from prying eyes and ears and enchanted for one purpose or another. The portraits talked and moved, like always, but so did the various statues and figurines.

Harry thought, all in all, he could learn to love Ravenclaw, even if he had no idea how he'd managed to end up there.

***

The day after arriving, during breakfast, when Penelope and Robert handed out the class schedules, Harry finally understood what the other items on his school list had been for. Hogwarts, at least in this timeline, was teaching muggle courses alongside the magickal courses.

Harry didn't know why, but as he read his schedule, he was pretty happy with it -- there were things he'd get to learn that he'd honestly wondered about, and in his original timeline he'd been forced to look it up himself and figure it out or ask Hermione about it.

Hermione was a loss he didn't want to deal with. Sure, he could try and befriend her anyway, but he wondered if helping her acclimate to Gryffindor, from the sidelines, would be more beneficial and keep her more out of trouble, instead.

Harry turned his attentions back to the class schedule before him. It was Monday, and on the slate for the day was the following:

**Mondays and Wednesdays**  
_6:00 - 8:00 a.m._ Breakfast (All Students)  
_8:10 - 8:40 a.m._ Homeroom (1st Floor, Classroom 3)  
_8:50 - 9:45 a.m._ Magickal Theory (with Slytherin)  
_9:55 - 10:50 a.m._ Charms (with Slytherin)  
_11:00 - 11:55 a.m._ Muggle Studies (with Gryffindor)  
_12:10 - 2:00 p.m._ Lunch (All First Years, with the Second and Third Years)  
_2:10 - 3:10 p.m._ Sexual Education and Health (with Slytherin)  
_3:20 - 4:15 p.m._ Solitary Study (Lecture Hall 3, Third Floor) (All First Years)  
_4:25 - 5:20 p.m._ Geography (with Slytherin)  
_5:30 - 7:30 p.m._ Dinner (All Students)  
_7:40 - 8:40 p.m._ Free Time  
_8:50 p.m. -_ Bed/Dormitory Checks  
_9:00 p.m. -_ Curfew, Lights Out, Bedtime (All 1st through 3rd Years)

Harry thought it seemed like a pretty packed schedule, but there was a part of him that was grateful for that -- there'd be less time to worry and less time to get into trouble. There were some surprises, obviously -- what was Homeroom, and why would he be visiting it each morning for half an hour? Why was lunch separated by year? And he hoped, he really hoped, that the Sexual Health class wouldn't be embarrassing. He was a grown man, inside his head and in his soul, so shouldn't he be well informed enough already?

***

Homeroom, as it turned out, was overseen by Assistant Professor Harding. Assistant Professor Harding was a short fellow, with striking red hair and brown eyes. His eyes occasionally flashed orange, which reminded Harry of Madam Hooch, but he didn't think they were related.

Assistant Professor Harding informed them that Homeroom was just where they took roll, and that he'd also read out any announcements and reminders, and they'd also head to this same classroom when they had detention -- unless detention was with Professor Ravens, Madam Hooch, or Professor Sprout.

After that short half-hour, Harry went with Draco, Theo, Blaise and Ines to Magickal Theory. They had it with the Slytherins, and instead of it being fraught and uncomfortable, it went fine. Harry was fascinated by the beginning class -- about the different types of magick and how magick works -- but he also knew a lot of it already.

During Magickal Theory and Charms, Draco sat with Pansy and Millicent, while Harry sat with Blaise and Theo. Ron seemed to sit as far away from the other Slytherins as possible, but Morag and Fergus sat next to him, one on each side. Harry couldn't help but feel glad that someone in Slytherin had at least tried to befriend Ron. Ronald's attitude was way more in line with Slytherin values than Harry could have ever been prepared for, but that didn't necessarily mean that Ron belonged there -- and it certainly didn't mean that Ron was happy about the sorting.

In Muggle Studies, with Gryffindor (and Harry was surprised it was a mandatory class), they learned about electricity and phones and it was mentioned that plumbing worked similarly for muggles as it did for wizards, just wizards had access to potions and the magick to make potions and water work together. There were several Ravenclaws who seemed surprised by this information, but half the Gryffindors seemed equally amused and surprised too.

Sexual Education and Health reviewed what they'd learn for the year and Professor Jones assigned them some reading, a summary, and took questions about whether they'd be separated into boys and girls for the more detailed stuff -- they would not. Professor Jones believed it was very important for all genders and sexes to know everything they could about each other.

During the Solitary Study hour, overseen by Apprentice Allane, they mostly did the homework for Magickal Theory, though some of them had moved onto the Charms homework before the end of the period.

Geography with Professor Becker was their last class of the day, and they spent the period reviewing the Geography of the UK, so that they then could move on to other parts of the world.

***

The rest of Harry's week looked like:

 **Tuesdays and Thursdays**  
_6:00 - 8:00 a.m._ Breakfast (All Students)  
_8:10 - 8:40 a.m._ Homeroom (1st Floor, Classroom 3)  
_8:50 - 9:45 a.m._ Literature (with Slytherin)  
_9:55 - 10:50 a.m._ Wizarding Government and Politics (with Slytherin)  
_11:00 - 11:55 a.m._ History of Magick (From 10th Century to 1799) (with Gryffindor)  
_12:10 - 2:00 p.m._ Lunch (All First Years, with the Second and Third Years)  
_2:10 - 4:10 p.m._ Transfiguration (with Hufflepuff)  
_4:20 - 5:20 p.m._ Defense Against the Dark Arts (with Hufflepuff)  
_5:30 - 7:30 p.m._ Dinner (All Students)  
_7:40 - 8:40 p.m._ Free Time  
_8:50 p.m. -_ Bed/Dormitory Checks  
_9:00 p.m. -_ Curfew, Lights Out, Bedtime (All 1st through 3rd Years)

 **Fridays**  
_6:00 - 8:00 a.m._ Breakfast (All Students)  
_8:10 - 8:40 a.m._ Homeroom (1st Floor, Classroom 3)  
_8:50 - 9:45 a.m._ Maths (with Hufflepuff)  
_9:55 - 10:50 a.m._ Free Time  
_11:00 - 11:55 a.m._ Physical Education (with Slytherin)  
_12:10 - 2:00 p.m._ Lunch (All First Years, with the Second and Third Years)  
_2:10 - 4:00 p.m._ Herbology (with Slytherin)  
_4:20 - 6:20 p.m._ Beginning Potions (with Hufflepuff)  
_6:30 - 8:30 p.m._ Dinner (All Students)  
_8:40 - 9:30 p.m._ Astronomy (with Gryffindor)  
_9:45 p.m. -_ Curfew, Bed Checks, Lights Out (All 1st through 4th Years)

By Friday morning, he was exhausted, but grateful to be back at Hogwarts and he actually felt like he was doing really, really well already. He hoped to continue doing well. Physical Education, Friday before lunch, was the first Flying lesson -- and Harry was really, really looking forward to being back on a broom again.

***********************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ravenclaw Students in Harry's Year:  
> Lowri, Mandy, Su, Padma, Lisa, Ines.  
> Terry, Michael, Stephen, Kevin, Anthony, Draco, Theo, Harry, Blaise.
> 
> Slytherin Students in Harry's Year:  
> Millicent, Tracey, Daphne, Morag, Primrose, Pansy.  
> Vincent, Gregory, Orson, Fergus, Morrison, Pike, Ron.
> 
> Hufflepuff Students in Harry's Year:  
> Hannah, Susan, Emilia, Madeline, Meghan.  
> Justin, Wayne, Owen, Ernie, Charles, Zach.
> 
> Gryffindor Students in Harry's Year:  
> Lavender, Tilly, Hermione, Amanda, Parvati, Sally-Anne, Emma.  
> Brogan, Caio, Seamus, Neville, Dean.


	6. The Timeline Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry goes to the library and discovers the changes in the timeline.
> 
> Thank you to AO3 user rigger42 for the idea for this chapter!! Shoutouts will always be given for good ideas :) Thanks!

Harry hefted the four books in his arms, one was much larger than the other three, and struggled with his book bag, which was coming very close to falling off of his shoulder, as he walked down the aisles of the library. He was looking for a good table, but he was, honestly, also looking for Hermione.

For the first three weeks of school, he'd struggled with his decision to leave her alone -- to not try to help her, to not try to be friends. Recently, though, he'd decided he was wrong and now he wanted to fix it. He wanted to be Hermione's friend. So much was already different in this timeline -- he was, by all accounts, friends with Theo, Blaise, Draco, Ines and Neville. But he wasn't friends with almost anyone else and he'd tried hard, so far, to reach out to Ron but it just hadn't worked.

This Ron didn't want to be friends with Harry. He'd been very clear about it and had asked Harry to stop trying. Ron was a Slytherin, and he needed to show a united front to the school as a Slytherin; he needed to be accepted among the Snakes, and that wasn't going to happen if he was too friendly with the Boy Who Lived. Ron had been honest and had explained patiently -- he'd never fall in with Death Eaters, of course, but House loyalty was extremely important to Slytherins and they were his family now.

Harry hadn't figured on losing Ron. He just hadn't. So since that ship had sailed, he was absolutely going to try to be friends with Hermione. That, he could fix.

Hermione didn't have any friends in Gryffindor, that he could see. Harry knew her personality was...challenging, but he also knew she was a loyal and amazing friend when given the chance. He'd seen her be friendly with Sally-Anne, Amanda and Emma, but he'd also seen the rest of the Gryffindor first years (aside from Neville) bully her, pretty endlessly. And that wasn't even starting on the way the first year Slytherins treated her and the Ravenclaws were hardly any better. The Hufflepuffs were nice to her, but they were a very insular group. No, it was up to Harry.

Spotting her at a long table, by herself, in the back, Harry rushed over. He set his books down opposite her and pulled a chair back.

"May I sit here, Hermione?" he asked politely.

Hermione's hair crackled a little as she looked up, her eyes were spooked. She pressed a hand to her heart. "Oh, Harry, you scared me! Of course you can sit!" She looked over at his books and gave him a slightly sardonic grin. "Oh, I'd have read everything ages ago, if it were me!"

"If what were you?" Harry asked as he put his book-bag on the table and sat down. 

"If I were the Boy Who Lived, I'd have read everything about me and Riddle that I could get my hands on," Hermione explained before returning her attention to the parchment in front of her.

"I'm hoping to read through the important bits, take some notes and still have time for homework. I'm finishing up the assignment for Government and Politics, and the questions for Literature," Harry explained.

"Are you behind?" Hermione asked. At Harry's shrug, she elaborated. "I just mean..those assignments are due on Tuesday, but what about your assignments that are due on Wednesday? I'm working ahead, you see. By tomorrow, I'll be finished with everything due up through Friday."

"Since we'll be assigned homework for Thursdays classes on Tuesday, I don't think I'm behind. I'm in a pretty good place, which is why I have time for this...extracurricular work," Harry replied, a little defensively.

"I don't mean anything by it, Harry. You should see the state of some of the Gryffindors' homework. Some of them will be scrambling all weekend to finish what's due on Monday." She looked back down at the book to her left. "Did you finish part one of _Redwall_? I'd read it before, but the questions Professor Roo asked us to answer alongside, well...they really put it in a new perspective for me."

Harry nodded. "I got through it quickly. I hadn't read it before, but it was a fun read." He gestured to the small stack of books. "I'm gonna start on this lot, but I'm right here if you need anything, or if you want to talk."

Hermione nodded and waved a hand at the various papers, books and supplies in front of her and then seemed to become reabsorbed in an instant.

Harry pulled _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Lord Riddle by E.W. Hale_ over first, and took out a pen and a muggle notepad. Shockingly, the first few chapters were about Tom Riddle's childhood and how he took the name Lord Voldemort in later life. The next chapters were about why the Wizarding world, in general, no longer called him Voldemort -- and it explained taboo magick and ancient rituals that could cast a hex on someone's name. Then there was a chapter about Riddle's time at Hogwarts and his life after it -- including his desire to teach DADA. The book leapt time, then, and talked about Riddle's short-lived political career and, finally, his descent into madness beginning with forming the Death Eaters and making them all take a mark that was nearly impossible to remove. The next few chapters detailed the war, the deaths, the torture, the destruction, and then there were the last few chapters about the Order of the Phoenix and how its members, Lily and James Potter, gave birth to the boy who would defeat Voldemort. The book ended in an afterword which mentioned that Lily and James had died, but that Harry had lived, and that he (Harry) was hidden away from the magickal world for his safety.

It was a lot of information. Information most people hadn't had or hadn't known in his original timeline, and Harry wondered about it but he was also so very grateful that it was all here, in black and white, ready and waiting for anyone to read.

Next, he tackled the book he was most interested to read: _The Trial of Sirius Orion Black by M.S. Bishil_. He didn't know if there were any books about it in his original timeline, but he was anxious to see what had happened to Sirius in this timeline. Was he still in Azkaban? Had he been kissed by a Dementor? Was he dead already?

It was a short book, mostly just a transcript of the trial, some fairly snarky commentary by the author, and then the verdict and some other revealing details. After an abbreviated trial, Sirius was found not guilty of the crime he was charged with and the Aurors and the Department of Law Enforcement had turned their attentions to capturing Peter Pettigrew.

Harry took a deep, slow, breath. If Sirius was free...where was he? He shook his head. No matter what, the books couldn't tell him where Sirius was now. Harry pulled the next book from the stack and opened it to chapter one. _Life After Riddle by Penny Wicker_ was very short and described what the Ministry had been up to since Riddle's fall, as well as other reforms that had taken place, and then it went on to recommend that the reader should read _Hogwarts Reimagined by Q.C. Ralph_ if they wanted to know more of what had changed after Riddle's defeat.

 _Hogwarts Reimainged_ was already on Harry's list and was the last book, aside from his homework texts, that he'd put on the table. Harry pushed aside _Life After_ and grabbed the last book on his list. This book was also short, but it was much more interesting. It described what had happened to Hogwarts during the war and the educational reforms and the changes that Headmaster Dumbledore had put into place once Riddle was gone. It also described the new classes and their usefulness in the magickal world. There was also a chapter on why Professor Binns was no longer with them, and why Muggle Studies was mandatory for all students for the first two years.

When Harry was finished reading, he felt exhausted, but he also knew he did need to finish his homework, but...he needed a break.

"I'm going to head to the kitchens and get a snack," Harry said quietly. "Do you want to come with me? Get a snack, take a break, and then come back and finish up before dinner?"

Hermione rolled her neck and stretched out her cramped fingers. "That sounds lovely. You know where the kitchens are? I did skip lunch."

"I thought you might have, and yeah, I do," came Harry's response.

"Okay, then, yes, let me pack up and I'll go with you to the kitchens. I'm starving and...I guess I could use a break," Hermione replied.

Harry nodded and packed up his supplies. He left the books sitting on the table though, he didn't need to check them out now that he knew what had changed. He still didn't know why everything was so different, but he also didn't think there was much chance in finding out the whys.

******************************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ravenclaw Students in Harry's Year:  
> Lowri, Mandy, Su, Padma, Lisa, Ines.  
> Terry, Michael, Stephen, Kevin, Anthony, Draco, Theo, Harry, Blaise.
> 
> Slytherin Students in Harry's Year:  
> Millicent, Tracey, Daphne, Morag, Primrose, Pansy.  
> Vincent, Gregory, Orson, Fergus, Morrison, Pike, Ron.
> 
> Hufflepuff Students in Harry's Year:  
> Hannah, Susan, Emilia, Madeline, Meghan.  
> Justin, Wayne, Owen, Ernie, Charles, Zach.
> 
> Gryffindor Students in Harry's Year:  
> Lavender, Tilly, Hermione, Amanda, Parvati, Sally-Anne, Emma.  
> Brogan, Caio, Seamus, Neville, Dean.
> 
> ***
> 
> Redwall by Brian Jacques (first published book in the series, published in 1986).


	7. Needs Must

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back in the future, we learn what Draco does.
> 
> This isn't exactly a chapter...it's more of a snippet. Sorry I've been MIA in my WIPs. I've had a rough couple of weeks, and I've had the Wicked Narrative prodding at me to just write more of it, and then I took a long weekend with my gf. The following is very, very short. Enjoy!

_5th, November, 2010_

He'd had an entire night to determine what the best course of action would be and now he stood, in the vault-room of Malfoy Manor, staring at the large relic before him. Draco sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He had never showed the relic (the platform) to Harry, for fear of what he might do. But now, when Harry clearly needed help, he knew what he had to do. He had to help Harry, come hell or high-water.

"Xena!" he called in a near-whisper.

A woman popped into existence to his left, her long hair blowing in a wind that wasn't there, her bright eyes sparkling with magick. She wasn't a ghost, instead she was a corporeal family Spirit who aided in times where deep magick was necessary.

"Are you sure, Draco?" she asked, her voice light and high-pitched, but kind.

Draco nodded. "I know that I can't know what will help him, but I've got to help him, if I can."

"Malfoy magicks of this sort are very strong and wildly unpredictable," she cautioned.

"It's the only artifact we have that I know, for certain, will help him. Will you go through?" Draco asked.

Xena nodded. "I serve at the pleasure of the Lord and Master Malfoy." She looked over at the table, where a thick notebook sat. "Is that all?"

"That's everything. You'll see to it that they get what they need? Both of them?" Draco stepped back from the platform and turned towards her.

"Yes, of course," Xena replied. "The ritual could cut you off, temporarily, from your family magicks. Are you prepared to pay the price?"

"I'm prepared," Draco replied as he moved toward the relic again. 

He reached out and, with wandless and nonverbal magick, pulled the platform to face north. As he started chanting, Xena gathered up the thick notebook and then climbed on-top of the platform.

"It will take me weeks to recover, once I'm back from your task, Draco," Xena told him. "Make sure, in your heart, that you'll be okay without me, before we continue."

"I've never needed to call on you before. Never dared. I'll be okay," Draco responded. He looked over at her. "Do you undertake this task of your own free-will?"

"Yes," she responded. "My word is my bond, and I undertake the task you've set of my own free will and understanding the consequences."

"And if you can't return?"

"I shall severe the bond between myself and the Malfoy line," came Xena's reply.

"And will you agree to stay until your task is done and then, and only then, seek the way home?" Draco cried as wind began to pick up around them.

"Yes!" Xena yelled, and then she began to chant in an ancient language that Draco could not understand.

His voice raised with hers, chanting in Latin. When he was finished, he raised his voice even louder to read the inscription that was engraved onto the platform.

"Hope springs from the well of time, but time waits for no man. Death is not an absence, but the absence of time. Great magick has a price, but the price paid is also magick."

There was a blast of light accompanied by a shower of rain and a boom of thunder. The Manor went dark and Draco collapsed on the floor.

When he woke next, Xena and the thick notebook were gone and the relic shone with an odd blue light.

Draco locked the relic away once more, turned on his heel and apparated back to his apartment -- he could only hope his own timeline would remain and that he'd know it if it didn't.

*******************************


End file.
